[OUSD] How does your school ranking impact the lottery?
I understand how there are a number of things that contribute to a child's priority for a school (eg, ongoing student or neighborhood school). What I don't understand is how the ranking of schools gets managed in the lottery.
- Is it that there is a lottery for your #1 school, and if you don't get that, you get bumped to your #2 school to see if there is space (in which case, the #2 school may have not have any spots left, so you end up on the wait-list?)?
- Or is there some more complex algorithm that distributes students according to their holistic rankings?
I guess, I'm trying to find out if putting a highly popular school as your #1 means that, if you don't get it, you are much more likely to get a very low-demand school, as others would have put your #2 or #3 as their #1?
Nov 19, 2024
Parent Replies
List the schools in your true order of preference. If you get into the school you ranked #2, you will drop off the list at all the schools you ranked below #2. You remain on the waiting list for your #1 school. The lottery for each school is independent, so it's luck of the draw for each. Then the system uses your rankings to know which school to assign you to if, say, you land a spot at both your #3 and #6 choice. Of course, there will be a larger pool of applicants for higher demand schools, so that's something to weigh as you decide which schools to choose.
Thank you! You nailed my question - that each lottery is independent, and then the algorithm is used to place you based on your rankings!